Ponte Vecchio Florence: the 2 million euro conservative restoration starts

Ponte Vecchio, symbol of Florence and one of the most famous monuments in the world, will be the subject of a conservative restoration for the first time in its centenary history. The bridge, in fact, suffers from all the ailments of a property exposed to atmospheric agents and the constant flow of the Arno, including floods, and although it is firmly and anchored, without any structural safety problem, it needs careful operation. of cleaning and arrangement of the most defenseless parts.

The works, designed in close coordination by the Fine Arts and Viability services of Palazzo Vecchio, will cost around two million euros. “It is – says the mayor Dario Nardella – an unprecedented operation: over the centuries the bridge has undergone various transformations and numerous consolidations, the last one after the dramatic flood of 1966, but we had never worried about the state of the stone and the decorations . Now the time has come, thanks to a large investment by the municipal administration, for a complete restyling that will return to the city and to the world an iconic property that has been completely restored and enhanced ».
In the next few days, the construction of a floating platform complete with scaffolding necessary for the execution of the surveys, the installation of the bridge monitoring system (which will last one year) and the sampling of the materials, a fundamental service for the restoration design. These are therefore preparatory activities that will be carried out by qualified companies in charge identified as part of the Global Service. The platform will in fact be used by the employees of the laboratories in charge and will remain positioned within the riverbed for about three weeks, barring unforeseen events and adverse weather conditions, moving from time to time from one span of the bridge to the other. the timing necessary to carry out the specific investigations and sampling of each span / pile / abutment. The platform will be moored with the help of two concrete cubes near the left bank and, for the entire period of the works, it will be moved by a small tug both for the needs of the reliefs and in the event of an orange or red weather alert. During the operations, the platform will be held in position by four admiralty anchors, weighing approximately 70 kilograms each, located upstream of the Ponte Vecchio. The anchors will also be connected to each other by a catenary on the bed of the riverbed about 50 meters from the rostrum of the piers, always on the mountain side. In addition to the surveys with the platform, some shooting with a drone is planned between 24 and 25 October. The assembly operations will last three days, the surveys will go on for three weeks.

The restoration works will intervene on chromatic alterations, on the presence of algae, lichens and weeds, on incoherent superficial deposits, on fractures and cracks of the pietra forte, particularly evident under the arches. Furthermore, all the humidity stains present in the intrados of the product, on the shoulders and on the piles must be eliminated. We will start with the biological disinfestation and then proceed with the consolidation of the damaged stone and the reconstruction of the missing parts of all the components of the bridge, from the vaults to the piers to the sub-arches and the parapet. Particular attention will also be given to the parts decorated with coats of arms and copings, which are now difficult to read. The degraded wooden parts (so-called struts) that support the shops with anti-woodworm treatment and painting will also be arranged. Finally, work will be carried out on the roadway with joint styling and protective painting of the pavement, also in order to prevent any possible percolation of rainwater inside the building.